TAX DAY!!

Money, money, money.

I wish money didn't make the world go around -- it should be love, right?
But love doesn't pay the bills. Don't count on it.
The only 2 things you can count on in life are death and taxes.
I hate the tax man - No taxation without representation!
Stealing from the rich to give to the poor -- if only the middle man didn't grease his own palm.
Because money doesn't grow on trees.
She works hard for the money!
Then brings home the bacon and fries it up in a pan.
Sing for your supper. Everyone wants a piece of the pie. A taste of the good life.
But it's not a piece of cake. Not living on easy street.
Easy money isn't buried treasure. Dig for gold. Put your back into it. Go for broke.
Have to spend money to make money. Make your money work for you. Money in the bank.
A penny saved is a penny earned. Waste not, want not.
Nothing is free.
Nothing but love.
Pass it on.

Got any other tax day/money quips or quotes?
Hope you get a refund and not a taxes due Monopoly card this tax day!

Charts - Put them to work! #mondaymotivation

Have you noticed a decline of work ethic in the service industry lately? The last few times we've been out to eat or shop, there seems to be this unfriendly, put-upon attitude pervading the experience. Maybe it's just me.

Don't get me wrong, some of the younger generation are completely gung-ho workers and innovators, but others obviously don't want to be there or don't know what they're doing, so they give up trying. It makes me wonder if maybe some parents are so busy that they aren't making their kids do chores around the house which instill a sense of responsibility and a value and pride for getting work done. I know sometimes it's easier to do the chores yourself rather than monitor the kids to make sure it gets done right, buh-lieve me! But the time and aggravation are worth it in the long run. Here are a couple of my Lazy Housewife-isms...

Do a kid's chore, you get a lazy adult. Teach a kid a chore, you get a productive adult.

A little whining now equals a lot of thanks later.

So, to make assigning and keeping track of chores easier (which is what the Lazy Housewife does) I have a chart (I <3 charts!)

This first one is what I use. The top three chores rotate monthly. I mark a tally when they do a chore or enter an amount of money for specialty chores.

In the bottom section, I subtract any purchases they make from their allowance. At the end of a quarter, I add everything up and deposit most of what they make into savings, but also give them some spending money. It's visual and shows them the value of working and saving money if they want something big like cool new shoes. Sometimes they pool together for a new video game. I've been using this system for years with only minor adjustments.

For an added amount of responsibility, you could have them tally their chores themselves and even total up the money.

Here's a blank that's more versatile. You can let me know if you'd like the Excel file (makes totaling that much easier, if you know Excel) I know there are other templates out there online, too.

I know helping contribute to my family as a kid made me a better person - though I sure didn't know it at the time and hated my chores. But as I got older, I didn't mind so much and now I miss those times setting the table or doing dishes in the kitchen with my mom.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on chores & allowance. There's plenty of ways to work it!
Have a great week!

Going Old School

School lunches are the beginning of the end of nutrition for our kids. Once they start eating at school, we have less control of what they eat. The government tries to help with required side dishes and limiting calories and whatever else they're trying to do, thinking they're helping. But kids will eat what they want to eat. Healthy choices start at home.

These old sayings and quotes are honest to goodness truths...

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

You are what you eat.

If you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it.

True healthcare reform starts in your kitchen, not in Washington (source)

Eat to live, not live to eat. - Socrates (source)

Garbage in garbage out. - George Fuechsel (source)

The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not. - Mark Twain  (from brainy quotes)

In general, mankind, since the improvement of cookery, eats twice as much as nature requires. - Ben Franklin  (from brainy quotes)

The doctor of the future will no longer treat the human frame with drugs, but rather will cure and prevent disease with nutrition. - Thomas Edison (source)

Today, more than 95% of all chronic disease is caused by food choice, toxic food ingredients, nutritional deficiencies and lack of physical exercise. - Mike Adams (source)

To get our kids to eat better in life, we must do it ourselves at home first with as much natural foods as possible and keep the artificial, processed foods to a minimum. I'm totally guilty of taking advantage of time-saving pre-packaged goodies to pack lunches with. But I try to balance those with more healthy options.

So here are my tips for packing healthy lunches:

• nature has plenty of pre-packaged, serving-size foods, take advantage of them!
• and for the bigger or harder to manage fruits and veg, pre-cut and prepackage them yourself - this is also great for grabbing a quick snack!
• try to keep a ratio of at least 4 out of 5 healthy choices
• the main dish - pbj or pbb(anana) sandwiches on white wheat bread are my boys' staples
• at least one fresh fruit or veg - my bigger boys need more food, so they get two or three
• a healthy side - nuts, granola bars, pretzels, whole grain crackers
• a low-cal drink - they make low-cal juice pouches, and sometimes water is what they choose - everyone should drink more water!
• a sweet - this is my clinker, but as long as you have all the rest and you don't go overboard, everyone deserves a little dessert, and there are healthy choices here too.

Bon appetit!